Photo: Unsplash
Age: Around 12-15 months and up, with vegetables cut small and soft.
Fried rice is a fast, flexible weeknight meal, and a toddler-friendly version just means dialing back the salt and soy sauce and making sure vegetables are cut small and cooked soft. Day-old rice works best since it fries up without turning mushy.
Ingredients
- 2 cups cooked rice, preferably a day old
- 1/2 cup mixed peas, corn, and diced carrot, steamed until soft
- 1 egg, scrambled
- 1 tablespoon neutral oil (like vegetable or avocado oil)
- A small splash of low-sodium soy sauce (optional, for older toddlers)
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large pan or wok over medium heat.
- Scramble the egg in the pan, then push to one side.
- Add the rice and steamed vegetables, breaking up any clumps of rice.
- Stir-fry for 4-5 minutes, mixing everything together.
- Add a small splash of low-sodium soy sauce if using, and stir to combine.
- Cool slightly and check temperature before serving.
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Why day-old rice works better
Freshly cooked rice tends to be too moist and clumps together when fried, while rice that's been refrigerated overnight dries out slightly, giving separate, fry-friendly grains.
Adjusting sodium for younger toddlers
For toddlers under about 15-18 months, it's reasonable to skip the soy sauce entirely — the vegetables and egg still provide plenty of flavor, and keeping sodium low is generally recommended at this age.
